Will The Real Preston Stand Up?
by Clare bear 48
Summary: A short story when Michaela had to treat Preston A Lodge 111. A small story with a Christmas end.


**Will The Real Preston Stand Up?**

**By Clarebear**

**Disclaimer I do not own the characters in this story. I wish the people who did would use them and create new series. I have just borrowed the characters.**

A/N this was from a Picture Challenge. Sully talking to Michaela and the children standing around. The saying that is bolded also:- "have you learnt nothing yet."

Colorado Springs had been changing so very rapidly especially with the introduction of the steam train. People trying to make a living by the move out West.

Preston A. Lodge 111 arrived in the sleepy frontier town of Colorado Springs on the same train like Michaela and Sully who were returning home from their honeymoon.

He was very surprised to see so many of the town's residents there to meet the train as he stepped off the carriage onto the platform after the very popular young couple. He took a look at what would soon be the beginning of his empire.

At first Michaela had been excited to have someone from the East and her home city. Someone she felt she could converse with and who understood her position. That was until she realized from which family he came: Preston's father had refused to financially back her father many years before.

Like the town's doctor it certainly did not take the town's people long to see the true nature of this new member in their midst.

Preston's first major act that upset the local folk was to fell the Kissing Tree a landmark that had been associated with them all since they had settled in the area. Upsetting the community did not seem to intimidate him in the least and when he injured Matthew in the process he had considered this as collateral damage, that further infuriated the district.

Preston was enjoying encouraging the gullible people of the community to take loans from his new bank. He was sure it would make him a small fortune with his inflated interest rates. Everyone seemed excited by the offer of the loans, until they watched as he hounded Horace for payments. Then they realized it was not the golden lining Preston promised.

The managers from the local businesses needed to travel to Denver if they had wanted to bank their hard earned takings. Otherwise it was kept on the premises as Loren Bray had done for years until he had been robbed a number of times, once by his own nephew Tom. It had broken his heart, knowing a member of his family could do such a thing. A local bank seemed like a good idea.

It soon became clear to the locals that Preston A. Lodge was only interested in himself. *Selfish to a T* as Loren had put it to Hank and Jake as they leaned on the horse railing at the saloon.

Michaela watched from a distance as her friends struggled with the bank manager. She was surprised that Ingrid her son's fiancé fell for his silver tongue, then Dorothy had agreed to his helping her set up the Gazette, much to Michaela's alarm.

The shattering of glass alerted those standing in the mercantile talking to Loren that something had happened. Michaela saw that Preston had dropped a vase. Offering her assistance she watched as she was told curtly that her skills were not required. She observed as the gentleman gritting his teeth and beads of perspiration dotted along his brow left the store. Her training warned her he was in severe pain.

Not many days later an unconscious Preston was carried to the clinic. Michaela had no option now of having to remove the clothes of this odious man, as she wanted to be sure of a correct diagnosis. After laying out the necessary instruments, she first needed to check on Mrs Harris in an upstairs recovery room though.

...

A groggy Preston regained consciousness, looking around trying to recognise his surroundings. First he saw some shocking apparatus laid neatly on the surgical tray next to the examination table. Even more shocking was the sudden realization, after lifting the sheet covering him, he had not a stitch of clothing.

"What is she doing? Does she need to compare me to that worthless husband of hers?" His mind was racing in all directions as his vanity got the better of him.

Michaela entered the room and saw Preston awake with the sheet firmly tucked under his chin. Smiling she said. "Oh you're awake".

Preston looked at her with suspicion. "What am I doing here?"

"You fainted in pain."

"I didn't give you permission to ...to ..." he stammered his eyes wandered down the sheet.

Indignantly Michaela replied, "I'm a doctor Mr Lodge. I needed to examine you, to confirm what I suspected to be the cause of your discomfort."

Still eyeing her with misgiving he asked, "And?"

"It appears you have a kidney stone. The sharp, intermittent attacks are the result of the stone moving down the urates from the kidney to the bladder, causing distension."

Disbelief written on his face he asked, "Kidney stone?"

Michaela nodded and explained that she could offer him something for the pain and help move the stone. But Preston was not really listening reeling from the information she had just given him. Finally he was coming back to what she had said.

"Will that cure it?"

Michaela continued with what she had said in terms she hoped he would understand, finally finishing with, "unless the bladder becomes blocked."

Dismayed he asked, "**BLOCKED**?"

Again she patiently explained. "By the stone. If that happens it might become necessary for surgical intervention."

Alarmed now Preston picked up a screwlike device from the small surgical table, his eye bulging as he thought of what that could be used for.

Deciding to escape quickly he stood, wrapping the sheet around himself. Grabbing his attire he bolted for the door.

Michaela protested saying she had not given him his medication.

...

That evening the family was gathered after dinner when Brian said he and the school children and a lot of town's folk had seen Mr Lodge running down the street with only a sheet on, his clothes flapping in his hand.

He and the other children wondered where he had come from the clinic, or the saloon.

"Do ya know Ma?" Brian asked innocently, looking at his Ma.

Sully looked on waiting for her answer. Matthew and Colleen had blushed cheeks looking towards the floor.

"Brian!" Michaela managed to say, before allowing he had been at the clinic for he was ill.

**"Have you learnt nothing yet?"**Sully came to the boys defence later in the evening. "He was only askin."

Sully sniggered imagining the sight Brian had described of Mr Preston Lodge in a sheet running from his wife.

...

The next evening at the Christmas pageant an almighty blood curdling scream broke the air.

Michaela moved to the window of the bank. "Mr Lodge?"

He peered out from behind the window blind looking like he had been in a fight.

"Did it?" she asked.

Preston replied. "It did."

"It's amazing, isn't it? How something so small can be so powerful."

"Astounding ... now if you don't mind." Preston closed the blind.

Back in Sully's arms she said he was now better without her help.

**"Have you learnt nothing yet?" **Sully repeated his statement from before. "He don' want ya help nor anyone elses."

Placing a soft kiss on her cheek they watched Brian and Sarah playing Silent Night on the piano as the others began to celebrate Christmas.

The end


End file.
